Brown thrills hometown crowd with World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series win at Lakeside Speedway

October 20, 2017

Brian Brown led the first seven laps before Kerry Madsen took command on the eighth circuit Friday night at the Lakeside Speedway. Brown inherited the lead with 10 to go after Madsen got spun around in lapped traffic. ‘BlackJack’ went on to score a popular hometown win in the FVP Platinum Battery Shootout. Sheldon Haudenschild and 12th-starting Donny Schatz completed the podium.

Brown, who is sponsored by FVP, passed Brent Marks in his heat race to score the victory and came from third to win the Craftsman Club Dash to earn the pole of the FVP Platinum Battery Shootout.

Brown survived multiple slide job attempts from both Jac Haudenschild and Sheldon Haudenschild to maintain the early lead as he reached traffic on lap six. By lap eight, Madsen had worked his way forward from his fifth starting position, surpassed both Haudenschilds and swooped underneath Brown for the lead.

Madsen, who has four World of Outlaws Craftsman Sprint Car Series wins to his credit this season, clearly established himself as the car to beat once he took command. While Madsen stretched his lead, complete mayhem took place behind him with drivers utilizing all the real estate Lakeside Speedway had to offer. Sheldon Haudenschild and Brown continued their battle for the runner-up position, exchanging the spot multiple times.

Madsen was well on his way to scoring his fifth win of the season before disaster struck on lap 20. Madsen got turned around in turn three and ended up with a flat right rear tire. At the time of the accident, Madsen had seven lapped cars and over 8.5 seconds between himself and the rest of the field.

The see-saw battle between Sheldon Haudenschild and Brown saw the latter assume the lead on lap 20. On the ensuing restart, Schatz and Sheldon Haudenschild waged war for the runner-up position allowing Brown to extend his lead. Brown wouldn’t relinquish the lead twice on one night as he was masterful in lapped traffic the last few laps en route to the popular victory.

“My guys did a phenomenal job. These Outlaw races are so tough to win. You can feel the pressure in lapped traffic,” a jubilant Brown said in victory lane.

“I’ve won with the Outlaws in Arizona and North Carolina so I’ve never really been able to celebrate. To do it here, with all the FVP guys in attendance—we’ll celebrate with a few beers tonight,” the Grain Valley, Mo., native said to a big ovation from the crowd.

Sheldon Haudenschild, who remains the leading contender for Kevin Gobrecht Rookie of the Year, settled for second once again as he continues to knock on the door of his first career win with the Series. Schatz, Jason Johnson and Madsen, with a remarkable comeback, completed the top five.

Madsen restarted 14th with 10 laps to go and showed the same speed he had while leading, sliding his way forward back to fifth at the finish line.

After the race, Madsen was in good spirits.

“Obviously it’s a huge disappointment when you have a car that good, but that’s racing,” he said. “We’ll try again next time.”

Sheldon Haudenschild cited the great racing between he and Brown, although most of it was when they were battling for second.

“We had some really good racing going on back there. I threw a couple of good sliders in the middle of the race but could never make it stick,” he said. “The track was absolutely perfect.”